I was browsing through my recipe journal (this is a journal I compiled before I got married)
I saw this recipe and didn't remember ever making it. I decided I should try it out, off course I added my spin on it.

1. Cook pasta according to the package directions, drain.
2. Cook the Turkey Bacon in a large heavy skillet until almost crispy, add chicken. Cook over medium-high heat.
3. Once the chicken is cooked through, add the minced garlic and saute for about 30 seconds.
4. Add the white wine and scrape the sides of the skillet, and simmer for about 2-3 minutes.
5. Add the undrained tomatoes, tomato sauce, rosemary and salt and pepper to taste.
6. Add the artichokes, and olives
7. Cook for about 10-15 minutes (stirring occasionally) until the sauce is reduced like so:

8. Stir in you pasta and transfer to a serving platter.
9. Garnish with your choice of cheese (I used mozzarella, it was all I had at the time) But a romano or asiago would be yummy!

I love buying value sets when it comes to makeup!

I have been wanting to try Tarte products for a long time.

Most, if not all of their products are oil/talc and fragrance free. They are made of earthy minerals and natural ingredients.I have a very sensitive face, so I have to be careful on what I put on my face.

I tried the tarte foundation and really like it (it reminded me of the Makeup Forever Matte Velvet Plus)But it was the wrong color, I will need to get a sample of something lighter.

Next I wanted to try a Tarte Blush. I was at Sephora buying my sister a birthday present and was in line to checkout. I was browsing the value bins, I saw this duo for only $15 for the bronzer/blush:

I have said before that I have a very sensitive face. Well, here is a list of a few things that I avoid:

Urban Decay Eye Primer: This primer makes my eye lids itchy, irritated, swollen and red. It takes at least two days for my eye lids to get back to normal. At first I wasn't sure what was going on, but after a few times of using the primer, I noticed that I only got a reaction while using it. I use other urban decay products and they never gave me any kind of reaction, so this is strange.
I had to stop using this primer and switched to Too Faced primer.

Clinique Acne Solutions Makeup: I am very sad that I can no longer use this foundation. I used it all of last year. The coverage is medium-high and it has salycylic acid to treat any breakouts at the same time.

I bought a fresh tube and decided to use it again this year, however, my eyes swelled up after wearing this foundation. I have to admit I wore the foundation for about 8 hours when I noticed my eye area (bellow my eye) itching. The next day I had very swollen bags under my eyes. I assume it was the salicylic acid. I am sure I could use it again, just not apply it anywhere near my eyes.

Sonia Kashuk Bronzer: This has been a repurchased product for me, I have been using the same bronzer for about 2 years, and I really liked it. But for the same amount of time I had dry/ red patchy cheeks. I could not figure out what it was. But I finally realized that my dry cheeks started when I started using this bronzer. I stopped using it, and right away I started noticing a huge difference in my cheeks. Now I no longer have dry cheeks. My face is back to normal-oily, rather then combination (oily T zone and dry cheeks)

I used to think that an oily face was bad, but a dry face is even worse. Your makeup looks flaky. With an oily face you can atleast use a matifying primer and a matte setting powder.

NYX Concealer: This stuff made me break out! I used it on my hyper pigmentation and the next day I got breakouts in the same exact spots! I read that mineral oil can causes breakouts, and this contains that. So I returned it.

NYX foundation: I really don't know what I was thinking, The concealer made me break out, I dont know why I thought the foundation wouldn't make me breakout. But about 2 weeks after I used the NYX concealer, I picked up the NYX foundation. First of all, I couldn't get any of the shades to match my face, but it also made me breakout in small little red pimples. Needless to say I had to return it.

Yesterday, I was one of those moms you see in the supermarket with a screaming toddler!

I don't know what happened, but I had to leave the grocery store because I just could not get him to stop screaming.

I used to judge those mom's myself, I used to think "why doesn't the mom do something?"

But now that I have been in those shoes, I will never again judge those moms.

My daughter and son are different as night and day. My daughter used to have her binky in her mouth until she was 2. So there were never any tantrums as long as she had her binky. This little guy is different, he is still nursing, he hates bottles and will not even look at a binky. If he wants to be comforted, he just grabs his blankie and runs to me.

So here is what happened:

Before we go anywhere, I always make sure the kids have napped, are fed and the little man nursed.

We had to make a quick run to the grocery store to pick up a few items.

This particular grocery store has little carts for kids:

Little Em wanted one, so naturally the little man wanted one to. I figured since we only have a few things to grab, they might as well both get the carts.

However, little man had a hard time steering it, he kept crashing into everything. Which is where I come in. I steered him holding the long pole... Everything was fine for the first few aisles, then he realized I was steering and had a melt down, he wanted to do it himself. But when I let him do it himself, he kept getting stuck, so he got frustrated and would start screaming. At one point he even sat on the floor, covered his eyes with his hands and was crying. I tried talking to him, comforting him, but nothing worked.

At that point I was ready to just carry him and have little Em use her shopping cart, however, He didn't like that and started screaming even more.

Oh boy. I grabbed the bagels and coffee and ran to the checkout with a screaming toddler. Many people were understanding saying their kids went through that stage. But I still felt bad and kept apologizing, because most likely they were judging me in their minds... Probably thinking that I am a bad mother.

We were out of there and guess what? He was back to normal. No more screaming or crying.

Let me tell you what birch box is, just in case you are not familiar with it.

It's a monthly subscription service which is $10.00 a month where you get sent 5-6 high-end samples each month. First you take a little survey so they can find out more about your skin, make up likes and dislikes so they know what to send you.

I don't know if you noticed, but it has been a little quiet around here. The reason for that is my sister flew in for a visit. (I last saw her 10 months ago) We were having such a great time, that I didn't even have time to blog or read any blog posts.

Welcome

Hi! My name is Rita, and I live in the beautiful NW. I am a wife to my high school sweetheart Denis, a mother to a sweet daughter Emily, and two adorable boys Nicholas and William. We are a Christian family, who is trying our best in life.